OneWorld.net (U.S.)

In recent times, the print media, television channels and web-based news portals flashed yet another picture of Afghan security officials inspecting a blast site in Kandahar city. Such is the regularity with which images like these make their way out of the war torn country that the world does not even raise eyebrows any more.

Mention Afghanistan and the first thought that crosses the mind is that of extremities unleashed by the Taliban and the horrors of war. But, as outsiders now working in Afghanistan to restore its building blocks of development will point out, there’s another face of violence. And that is hope.

Far away from Kandahar, in cities like Herat and Bamiyan, for example, the process of starting from scratch to create a new socio-political and economic order has already begun. And chipping in with more than just a helping hand are five Jesuits from India – Fr Stan Fernandes, Fr Antony Santiago, Br Noel Oliver, Fr Jermy Sequeira and Sch Anil Kumar Pudota – who have taken up the bid to provide the right inputs for the Afghans to get back on their feet.

It all began when Fr Antony Santiago and Br Noel Oliver landed in Kabul on April 28, 2005. They wanted to carry forward the good work and legacy left behind by many Jesuits who had, time and again, stayed in Afghanistan to help restore the realities of progress in a land shattered by 23 years of battle.

Proceeding to Herat on May 6, they set up base and spent a year learning the language and culture of the land as also establishing contacts with international NGOs and local authorities. In August 2005, Fr P S Amalraj officially registered this support programme under the banner of the JRS Afghanistan Outreach, thereby clearing the way for a wide range of activities that have already begun to usher in a dramatic transformation in the lives of the locals.

On July 17, 2006, Fr Stan Fernandes joined the team, followed by Fr Sequeira and Sch Pudota on August 22. Explaining the vision and plan of the Outreach programme, Fr Stan informs that they are “engaged in providing quality formal, non-formal and technical or vocational education through teacher training, arranging exposure and exchange programmes, teaching English, strengthening the educational infrastructure, offering models for growth and development of the marginalized sections and supporting organizations and movements to give women a voice in society.”

The involvement and commitment has been growing. So much so that invitations sent out to professionals for conducting short-term learning programmes are being accepted despite the notion of risk involved.

Cedric D’Souza, a software professional in a Pune-based multinational company, had volunteered for an SQL workshop in the faculty of computer science for ten days in October last year.

“It helped students grasp the concepts of database management systems and learn how to retrieve the required information from a database. The workshop has given the students a new confidence in themselves. Moreover, their trust in us has grown, as also the realisation of the tremendous potential of the IT revolution that can hasten the development process in their country,” says Cedric, while speaking of his ‘amazing’ experience.

As to whether these kind of voluntary activities are looked upon with suspicion or as being an attempt to spread Christianity in Afghanistan, Fr Stan says that they have not met with any resistance so far.

It may be recalled here that in 2006 members of a South Korean Christian aid group that tried to organise a three-day ‘peace festival’ in Afghanistan had been expelled after Islamic clerics accused them of trying to convert Muslims to Christianity. The event was to include a medical conference and two soccer games at Kabul's Olympic Stadium between Korean players and Afghanistan's national team.

Reacting to this, Fr Stan explains that any group that undertakes rehabilitation projects in Afghanistan, irrespective of religious status, would not want to interfere in any other way except to provide humanitarian support. “Afghanistan’s religious core of Islam is too strong to be shaken by the attempts of a few groups who may go there with the idea of converting them to other faiths,” he states.

With this equation kept transparent and above board, the Jesuits are now planning to carry this partnership forward with a new base at Bamiyan to reach out to the Hazaras. “The financial assistance has come from GTZ, a German funding agency, and this has helped us provide the University staff and students with reference books and multimedia resources to enhance teaching in the classrooms,” Fr Stan states.

Not wanting to limit the process to education, Fr Stan, with his background in watershed management, has also initiated a programme to train farmers in improved farming methods, harvesting, preservation and marketing of agricultural products. “This will help reduce the present import of even the daily common necessities from Iran or Pakistan, thus creating wealth within the country. Afghanistan produces a wide variety of fruits like grapes, pomegranates, melons, apricots, peaches and pears. This invaluable resource needs to be systematically developed and managed,” he observes.

Most importantly, the work done by the Jesuits has helped build a bridge of understanding and faith between Indians and the Afghans. “There are many countries and international organisations willing to donate money but what is in shortage is the required manpower to actually implement the programmes. We need people, organisations and institutions to share whatever they can, especially expertise in different sectors,” Fr Stan points out.

The idea, in the long run, is to empower the locals to take their destiny into their own hands. “We are playing the role of catalysts and we hope that this synergy will once again make them independent,” he adds.

As for those almost daily images of blasts and rescue operations, most of which emanate only from Kandahar, these don’t bother the Jesuits at all. It’s a part of their lives, just as it is for the Afghans.